Episodes

It was early last night. I thought, I'm not getting anything productive done, I'll just turn in. So I did what I always do. I open my Bible - just where we left off on our Red-Letter journey. We are on the Temple court still ...

We are on the temple courts during Jesus' last week. The Parable of the Evil Vine-Growers is perhaps the most scathing indictment that Jesus has ever given confronting the religious elite head on. No stone is left unturned (p...

Jesus is on the temple court speaking to the pharisees and he tells the Parable of the two sons. Jesus is pretty explicit about the different between professing belief and walking in faith. There's a famous expression that sa...

The Puzzle You are on an island where every inhabitant is either a Knight (who always tells the truth) or a Knave (who always lies). You meet two people, Red and Blue. Blue says: "We are both knaves." Question: What are the i...

I think we all remember the curse of the fig tree. It's a passage that sticks with you. Often though, we tend to skip right over the meat and jump straight into the dessert. As I reflect back to my own Bible studies with seas...

Picture your local county fair... especially the first couple of days. Animals all over the place. The air is thick with the sound of sheep and birds (doves). And wall to wall people tens of thousands fill the space. Now lock...

If you've ever watch one of those timelapse videos that show you the construction of a building, that is what it must be like to see inside of the brain of the Messiah. He sees everything historically, as it is laid out and H...

All four gospels cover the amazing entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem. This is such a beautiful story of quiet triumph (maybe not so quiet.). We are also starting to see timelines and dates as they playout in scripture. The ech...

Today was a masterclass in gospel harmonization. It isn't always pretty. The story takes place in the house of Simon the Leper, in Bethany. You can find the narrative in Matthew 26:8-13, Mark 14:4-9 and John 12:4-11. The stor...

We are with Jesus leaving Jericho on the way to the cross. There is this expectation within the disciples that when Jesus gets to Jerusalem that the Kingdom will just magically appear. Jesus answers this concern with Luke: th...

I love this scene for so many reasons. He's enthusiastic, tenacious. I picture him as shorter stature, nimble and almost gushing at the thought of seeing Jesus go by. I think I've mentioned my Millennial Bucket List in the pa...

Jesus is just outside Jericho on the road to Jerusalem. He encounters two blind men, and He stops cold in His tracks. Jesus always goes against the crowd! He hears the cries of these two blind men and uses the moment. Everyth...

I wrestled with what to title this podcast. Just after Jesus is confronted by James and John (and their mother) to sit at his right and left hand in the kingdom, a new play is sent out from the sidelines. Jesus huddles up wit...

Part of me wants to be offended by the question that James and John asked Jesus. Another part of me admires them for having the kahunas to do it! But then, they had to get their mother to do the asking. That's kind of weak fo...

Jesus didn't have a GPS, he had something better. He had ancient prophecy. And at this point in the journey, Jesus is the only one who can see the destination. The other disciples are blind and fearful. They are marching righ...

Did you miss it? How many times have you wandered through the gospels and noticed all the healings and through about Jesus saving all these people. It is worth going back and reviewing those healings. You'll see the distincti...

We approach one of the clearest passages in the gospels regarding Jesus and his mission. As they seek shelter in a Samaritan village on the way to Jerusalem, they are denied. The overzealous James and John want to rain down h...

Let’s face it, we don’t want to be called unworthy. We don’t like the word servant. We take an honest look at this tension as we explore Luke 17: 7-10. I actually came away from this feeling good about being the unworthy serv...

I think we can all relate to this on worldly terms. You get hired by the owner of a business and agree to $100 for the day. Then you put in a full 12-hour day. A new hire has just come on an hour ago. The guy who is paying yo...

After the rich young ruler walks away sadly, you can imagine that the disciples have some pretty pointed questions. And if you want to summarize, it's basically "ok, what about us?". Jesus answers Peter, who is asking this qu...

I always harken back to that famous wrestling match that Jacob had with God. For me, it is a healthy connection to approaching scripture. I wasn't comfortable leaving the Rich Young Ruler where I left it. I felt like I should...

I think we can approach the rich young ruler as something that doesn't apply to me. That would be a mistake. The issue isn't wealth. The issue is dependence. What are you dependent on? Those things, by definition are idols. S...

I think we've all heard the story of the Rich Young Ruler. But very often the entire story gets flattened to be about money and wealth. As we got into this, the entire theology of grace emerges. Once we came to the root of th...

Sorry for the vague reference - if you have not seen the movie "Benjamin Button". Benjamin Button, a character played by Brad Pitt, is living life in reverse. He is reverting to his childhood. On our Red-Letter journey, Peopl...